Cork woman sitting on toilet with knives had to be pepper-sprayed, court hears

A woman who brandished three knives at gardaí while sitting on the toilet had to be pepper-sprayed in order to subdue her, the district court has heard.

 Sergeant Eimear O’Connell told Skibbereen District Court that gardaí were called to a house in Newbridge Park, Skibbereen, at 7.35pm on April 24, 2025. 

Neighbours had reported that a woman who lived in the house — identified as 33-year-old Leanne Schwarz — was observed in a distressed state in the the street.

Gardaí attended the scene to carry out a welfare check on Schwarz. They entered the house via the unlocked front door and found Schwarz sitting on the toilet in the bathroom while another individual was in the bath.

The court was told that Schwarz appeared to be highly intoxicated and was behaving aggressively towards gardaí. She then produced three kitchen knives and had to be pepper-sprayed in order to subdue her. 

Schwarz, who had five previous convictions for road traffic offences, pleaded guilty to obstruction of a peace officer and production of an article capable of inflicting serious injury.

Colette McCarthy, defending, said Schwarz had fled the house that night during a domestic incident. She said her client had a history of drug addiction and the events of April 24 followed a relapse after a period of sobriety. 

The court heard that Schwarz had now been off drugs for three months but still “had a long way to go”. 

Ms McCarthy asked Judge Joanne Carroll to consider a probation report on Schwarz before deciding on penalty.

Judge Carroll said the gardaí had gone to the house in Skibbereen that night out of concern for Schwarz and she ended up having to be pepper-sprayed. The judge said it was a very serious matter that involved the production of knives and appeared to be a “drug-fuelled incident”. 

She said Schwarz was “going to have to stay off drugs if she wanted a positive outcome”, and the circumstances of the night explained the situation but did not excuse it. 

The judge agreed to ask for a probation report and remanded Schwarz on continuing bail to appear again on June 23.

Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.